Overshadowing depends on cue and reinforcement sensitivity but not schizotypy

Pickett, Clare; Cassaday, Helen J.; Bibby, Peter A.

Abstract

There is evidence for impaired selective learning mechanisms in individuals high in schizotypy. Overshadowing provides a direct test of selective learning based on cue salience and has previously been reported to be impaired in relation to schizotypy scores. The present study tested for overshadowing using food allergy and Lego construction task variants. Both variants used the same number of conditioned stimulus (CS) cues and the same number of learning trials. CS cues were trained in compound pairs or in isolation and overshadowing was subsequently tested on trials followed by negative versus positive outcomes. Participants also completed the O-LIFE to measure schizotypy and BIS-BAS scales to measure reinforcement sensitivity. Learning was demonstrated for both cue variants; however overshadowing emerged only in the Lego variant and only on the trials followed by the negative outcome. Contrary to expectations, there was no evidence for any relationship between overshadowing and O-LIFE scores. However, there was evidence of a positive relationship between overshadowing and BAS-Drive as well as a negative relationship with BIS-Anxiety, for the trials followed by the positive outcome in the food allergy variant. These results suggest that the development of overshadowing depends on cue and reinforcement sensitivity, but not necessarily on schizotypy.

Citation

Pickett, C., Cassaday, H. J., & Bibby, P. A. (2017). Overshadowing depends on cue and reinforcement sensitivity but not schizotypy. Behavioural Brain Research, 321, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2016.12.031

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Dec 23, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Dec 28, 2016
• Publication Date: Mar 15, 2017
• Deposit Date: Jan 4, 2017
• Publicly Available Date: Jan 4, 2017
• Journal: Behavioural Brain Research
• Print ISSN: 0166-4328
• Electronic ISSN: 1872-7549
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 321
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bbr.2016.12.031
• Keywords: Overshadowing; Associative learning; Task motivation; Schizotypy; Reinforcement sensitivity
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/850563
• Publisher URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S016643281630938X
• Contract Date: Jan 4, 2017